UNIVERSITY   OF   CALIFORNIA  agricultural  ExperimentStation 

College  of  agriculture  e.  j.  wickson,  acting  director 

BERKELEY,   CALIFORNIA 


CIRCULAR  No.  9  20 

(  April,  1906.) 


READING  COURSES  IN  IRRIGATION 


BY 

ELWOOD  MEAD. 


The  statement  made  by  Thaer,  the  noted  leader  in  agricultural 
science  in  Germany  nearly  a  century  ago,  that :  ilAn  agriculture  which 
has  mastered  the  control  of  water  so  that  moisture  can  be  supplied  to 
the  soil  or  removed  from  it  at  will,  instead  of  being  left  to  chance,  has 
reached  the  highest  possible  degree  of  perfection,"  has  far  greater 
significance  to-day  than  it  had  when  uttered ;  and  no  more  convincing 
evidence  of  its  truth  can  be  found  than  is  furnished  by  t{ie  irrigated 
lands  of  California,  where  the  benefits  of  putting  water  on  the  land 
by  irrigation  and  the  evils  of  not  removing  the  surplus  by  drainage 
are  alike  conspicuous. 

The  area  of  land  irrigated  is  now  being  rapidly  extended,  and 
there  is  every  reason  to  believe  that  the  rate  of  this  extension  will 
become  greater  in  the  future.  There  are  several  million  acres  of  land 
susceptible  of  irrigation,  and  the  water  to  irrigate  it  is  now  running  to 
waste.  Its  productive  capacity  and  selling  value  would  be  quadrupled 
if  "moisture  can  be  supplied  at  will,  instead  of  being  left  to  chance," 
and  the  rising  values  of  both  land  and  water  will  now  permit  of  the 
expenditure  to  do  this. 

Each  new  area  brought  under  irrigation,  each  new  increase  in  the 
water  taken  from  streams  or  lifted  from  under-ground  supplies,  gives 
rise  to  new  questions  regarding  water  titles  and  adds  to  the  impor- 
tance of  canal  management.  Hence,  while  our  knowledge  of  irriga- 
tion is  constantly  extending,  we  are  also  constantly  being  confronted 
with  new  problems  which  have  to  be  solved.  Those  most  familiar  with 
irrigation  and  most  skilled  in  its  practice  find  in  its  changing  condi- 
tions a  constant  field  for  study,  while  beginners  find  that  the  difference 


between  irrigated  agriculture  and  agriculture  dependent  on  rainfall 
requires  of  them  a  knowledge  of  many  things  wholly  new  and  strange. 

A  large  percentage  of  the  lands  being  brought  under  irrigation  are 
being  settled  by  men  from  humid  sections  of  the  country  who  must 
learn  in  some  way  how  to  grade  their  fields,  how  to  lay  out  laterals, 
how  much  water  is  needed,  and  how  often  to  use  it.  California  is 
vitally  interested  in  these  farmers  becoming  skillful  users  of  water  in 
the  shortest  possible  time.  Too  much  water  is  almost  as  bad  as  too 
little.  Wasteful  use  by  one  irrigator  often  ruins  his  neighbor's  crop 
and  injures  his  own.  The  injury  from  alkali  is  chiefly  due  to  wasteful 
or  unskillful  use  of  water. 

It  is  believed  that  the  University  of  California  can  aid  in  the  gen- 
eral improvement  of  irrigation  practice  by  extending  the  work  now 
being  done  in  the  class-room.  This  includes  instruction  in  Irrigation 
Engineering,  Irrigation  Institutions,  and  Irrigation  Practice.  We 
have  decided  to  offer  reading  courses  in  Irrigation  Institutions  and 
Irrigation  Practice.  Under  Irrigation  Institutions  are  included  the 
business  and  financial  methods  under  which  canals  are  built,  how  the 
rights  to  the  water  which  fills  them  are  acquired,  and  the  conditions 
and  terms  on  which  irrigators  are  supplied.  Irrigation  Practice  will 
include  descriptions  of  the  methods  of  preparing  land  for  irrigation, 
the  cost  of  such  preparation,  the  results  of  measurements  to  determine 
the  amount  of  water  used  in  irrigation  and  the  factors  which  influence 
it,  and  description  of  the  methods  of  irrigation  employed  in  California, 
for  fruit  growing,  fields,  and  gardens. 

Those  desiring  to  enroll  themselves  as  readers  should  make  appli- 
cation to  W.  T.  Clarke,  Assistant  Superintendent,  University  Exten- 
sion in  Agriculture,  Berkeley,  California.  Each  reader  will  be  fur- 
nished with  a  text-book  in  the  branch  of  the  subject  which  he  desires 
to  study.  He  will  be  expected  to  make  himself  thoroughly  familiar 
with  its  contents.  A  circulating  library  is  also  provided  for  collateral 
reading  and  reference.  These  books  should  be  read  as  carefully  as 
possible,  in  accordance  with  the  directions  given  in  this  circular.  After 
the  completion  of  the  work  here  outlined,  an  examination  will  be  ar- 
ranged with  some  one  connected  with  the  Department  of  Irrigation 
Institutions  and  Practice. 

These  courses  may  be  considered  a  University  course  given  in  ab- 
sentia, and  must  be  pursued  with  the  same  care  and  thoroughness  as 
though  done  in  the  class-room  in  Berkeley.  The  names  of  those  com- 
pleting these  courses  will  be  kept  as  a  special  mailing  list ;  and  they 


will  receive  thereafter,  not  only  the  bulletins  of  the  Experiment  Sta- 
tion, but  all  circulars  and  notices  of  special  publications  on  irrigation 
issued  by  the  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture.  Those  read- 
ing in  these  courses  by  themselves  will  receive  the  books  forming  the 
reference  library,  one  at  a  time,  by  express,  and  will  be  required  to  pay 
the  express  charges  both  ways.  There  will  be  no  fees  or  other  charges 
to  be  paid  by  the  students,  except  for  damage  to  books  beyond  reason- 
able wear.  The  Irrigation  Department  will  attempt  to  answer  letters 
of  inquiry  of  readers  in  this  course,  and  to  assist  them  in  any  questions 
they  may  find  in  their  studies. 

Reading  Circle. — It  is  strongly  recommended  that  wherever  pos- 
sible a  reading  circle  be  formed  for  mutual  helpfulness  in  this  study. 
Where  this  is  done,  the  whole  reference  library  will  be  sent  to  the 
member  designated  by  the  circle,  and  the  distribution  can  be  arranged 
to  suit  the  convenience  of  the  members.  We  would  suggest  that  the 
circle  form  an  organization,  changing  a  sum  for  membership  sufficient 
to  raise  a  fund  not  only  to  pay  the  express  charges  on  the  circulating 
library,  but  also  to  buy  a  few  books  on  the  subject  for  the  local  library 
or  as  a  nucleus  for  a  public  library,  if  one  is  not  already  in  existence 
in  the  community.  Thus  the  work  of  the  circle  will  become  more  per- 
manent. 

Another  advantage  of  the  organization  of  a  reading  circle  will  be 
the  possibility  of  personal  instruction  by  a  visit,  to  the  community,  of 
a  member  of  the  staff  of  the  Irrigation  Department.  Where  possible, 
some  such  arrangement  as  the  following  will  be  made :  After  the  com- 
pletion of  the  course  by  the  circle,  a  date  will  be  arranged  for  this  visit ; 
and  if  provision  can  be  made  for  the  projection  of  pictures  on  a  screen, 
the  instructor  will  come  prepared  to  give  an  illustrated  lecture  com- 
paring California's  irrigation  methods  with  those  of  other  countries. 
The  instructor  will  also  come  prepared  to  give  a  day  to  considering 
with  his  class  the  local  problems  of  interest  or  importance. 

Those  who  enroll  as  students  will  be  expected  to  make  reports  of 
their  progress,  and  in  these  reports  to  bring  out  the  relation  of  what 
they  are  reading  to  local  conditions  or  practice.  This  will  aid  the  in- 
structor in  making  suggestions  as  to  further  studies.  Comparisons 
by  the  reader  of  local  practice  or  local  problems  with  the  description 
and  discussion  of  the  text  will  give  life  and  interest  to  the  work.  In 
addition  the  reader  should  seek  to  arrive  at  independent  conclusions 
as  to  both  the  institutions  and  practice  needed  to  secure  the  best  de- 
velopment of  irrigated  agriculture  in  his  section.    To  this  end  it  is  sug- 


gested  that  each  reader  prepare  at  the  beginning*  of  his  course  a  set  of 
questions  which  embrace  the  things  of  greatest  interest  to  him  person- 
ally.   The  following  list  is  suggestive  of  what  these  may  embrace : — 

IRRIGATION  PRACTICE. 

1.  Is  check  irrigation  suited  to  mixed  farming  and  rotation  of  crops? 

2.  What  plan  of  applying  water  in  irrigation  is  adapted  to  the  largest  number 

of  crops,  and  hence  to  the  adoption  of  a  rotation  system? 

3.  Which  is  better  suited  to  the  irrigation  of  orchards,  checks  or  furrows? 

4.  How  often  should  orchards  be  irrigated? 

5.  How  often  should  alfalfa  be  irrigated,  and  when? 

6.  Does  it  pay  to  irrigate  small  grain? 

7.  What  are  the  benefits  of  winter  irrigation,  and  can  crops  be  grown  by  winter 

irrigation  alone? 

8.  Is  seepage  water  or  alkali  a  menace? 

9.  If  so,  when  do  its  ill  effects  begin  to  be  manifest,  and  what  are  the  causes? 
10.     Is  complete  under-drainage  feasible?     If  so,  at  what  depth  should  the  drains 

be  laid? 

IRRIGATION  INSTITUTIONS. 

1.  What  is  the  proper  foundation  for  water  titles — riparian  rights,  appropria- 

tions, or  licenses  issued  by  the  State? 

2.  Should  water  rights  for  irrigation  be  attached  to  the  land  irrigated? 

3.  Should  there  be  an  official  State  record  of  water  titles? 

4.  Should  charges  for  water  be  based  on  the  acres  irrigated,  or  on  the  quantity 

of  water  used? 

5.  Which  are  more  efficiently  managed — canals  operated  by  water  companies,  or 

canals  operated  by  farmers? 

6.  What  is  the  most  convenient  unit  of  volume  for  the  delivery  of  water — the 

inch,  the  cubic  foot  per  second,  the  gallon,  or  the  acre  foot? 

7.  What  volume  of  water  will  give  the  best  return  from  an  acre  of  land?    What 

volume  will  give  the  highest  return  from  the  acre  foot  of  water? 

8.  What  is  the  better  practice  in  irrigation — to  apply  water  with  the  object  of 

securing  the  largest  return  from  the  land,  or  the  best  return  from  a  unit 
volume  of  water? 

9.  What  is  the  value  of  water  for  winter  irrigation?     What   is  its  value  for 

summer  irrigation? 

The  books  included  in  this  course  bring  together  the  results  of 
practical  experience  and  scientific  observation  in  widely  separated 
sections  of  the  country,  and  it  is  believed  will  aid  in  determining  what 
is  best  suited  to  the  widely  varying  conditions  of  this  State.  It  is  also 
hoped  that  it  will  contribute  to  bringing  about  a  clearer  understanding 


of  the  complex  and  important  water  problems  of  California  which 
have  been  created  by  the  increasing  needs  of  users  for  irrigation,  the 
growing  consumption  of  water  by  cities  and  towns,  and  its  augmented 
value  for  power  purposes.  The  protection  of  existing  rights,  the  ad- 
justment of  rival  and  conflicting  claims  of  the  different  classes  of 
users,  and  the  wise  direction  of  future  development,  make  the  manage- 
ment of  the  water  resources  of  California  its  most  important  indus- 
trial issue. 

INSTKUCTION  IN  IEEIGATION  AT  BEEKELEY. 

For  the  information  of  those  who  desire  to  continue  their  studies 
in  Irrigation  at  the  University,  it  may  be  stated  that  a  complete  course 
in  Irrigation  Engineering  is  given.  The  courses  given  by  the  Depart- 
ment of  Irrigation  and  the  courses  in  the  College  of  Agriculture  most 
directly  related  to  Irrigation  are  as  follows : — 

1.  Irrigation  Institutions  and  Economics.  Professor  Mead. 
Present  conditions  of  irrigation  in  the  United  States;   irrigation  legislation; 

methods  of  establishing  rights  to  water;  inter-state  problems;  conditions 
necessary  to  development  of  the  agricultural  resources  of  the  arid  West; 
comparisons  of  irrigation  methods  and  laws  of  other  lands  with  those  of  the 
United  States;  irrigation  in  humid  sections  of  the  United  States;  operation 
of  irrigation  works,  individual,  cooperative  and  corporate  enterprises;  na- 
tional irrigation;  water  right  contracts;  duty  of  water.  Lectures  and  reci- 
tations. 

2.  The  Diversion,  Conveyance,  and  Application  of  Water. 

Professor  Etcheverry. 
Properties  of  water;  units  of  measurement;  flow  of  water  through  orifices, 
over  weirs  and  in  open  and  closed  channels;  gauging  laterals,  canals,  and 
streams  by  means  of  floats,  current  meters,  weirs,  modules ;  irrigation  works 
classified;  diversion  weirs  and  headgates;  alignment,  slope  and  cross-section 
of  canals;  suitable  grades  for  required  velocities;  construction  and  mainte- 
nance of  canals;  flumes  and  pipes  for  irrigation,  their  construction  and  use; 
methods  of  applying  water  to  land;  duty  of  water.  Full  illustrations  by 
lectures  and  practical  problems. 

2a.  Irrigation  Design.  Professor  Etcheverry. 

The  design  of  irrigation  structures,  such  as  headgates,  flumes,  and  drops.    Prep- 
aration of  detailed  estimates  of  cost  of  such  structures. 

3.  The  Conservation  of  the  Water  Supplies.  Professor  Etcheverry. 
Sources  of  water  supply;  precipitation,  run-off  and  fluctuation  in  stream-flow; 

loss  of  water  by  evaporation  and  seepage;  return  waters;  removal  of  sur- 
plus and  seepage  waters;  reclamation  of  alkali  lands  by  means  of  drainage; 


storage  of  water  in  natural  lakes  and  artificial  reservoirs;  utilization  of 
subterranean  sources  of  supply  by  means  of  pumps,  drains,  tunnels;  con- 
servation of  soil  moisture;  influence  of  forests  on  water  supply. 

4.     Drainage.  Professor  Etcheverry. 

Structure  of  soil  and  its  relation  to  drainage;  necessity  for  drainage;  its  ef- 
fects on  the  soil;  ground  water  and  its  flow;  laying  out  drains;  distance 
between;  depth  of,  grade  of;  size  of  tile;  kinds  of  drains;  drainage  sys- 
tems and  districts;  estimates  of  cost. 

AGEICULTUEE. 

1b.  Chemistry  and  Physics  of  Soils. 

Professor  Hilgard  and  Assistant  Professor  Loughridge. 
Origin,  formation,  and  classification  of  soils.  Physical  properties  and  mechan- 
ical analysis;  chemical  composition.  Soil  analysis — its  methods,  utility, 
and  interpretation.  Policy  of  culture;  exhaustion  of  soils  and  their  fertil- 
ization and  restoration;  drainage,  irrigation,  soils  of  the  arid  and  humid 
regions;  soil  regions  of  the  Pacific  coast. 

4a.  Agriculture.  Professor  Wickson. 

Field  cultures  of  grains,  vegetables,  and  forage  plants. 

4b.  Horticulture.  Professor  Wickson. 

Principles  and  practice  of  fruit  growing  in  semi-tropical  countries,  with  special 
reference  to  California  conditions  and  methods. 


Suggestions  for  Readers  in  Irrigation  Courses. 

IRRIGATION  PRACTICE. 
Volume  1. — Text-book. 
Volume  2. — Collateral  reading:  King  on  Irrigation  and  Drainage. 

The  text-book  in  Irrigation  Practice  is  made  up  from  a  series  of 
bulletins,  the  larger  part  of  which  were  prepared  by  members  of  the 
station  staff  or  professors  in  the  University  of  California. 

It  begins  with  a  description  of  the  methods  and  tools  used  in  pre- 
paring land  for  irrigation  and  the  methods  of  applying  water  to  crops. 
This  is  followed  by  a  description  of  some  of  the  home-made  devices  by 
which  farmers  can  lay  out  their  own  laterals. 

Next  comes  a  discussion  of  irrigation  practice  with  special  relation 
to  conditions  in  California,  and  includes  irrigation  in  field  and  garden, 
irrigation  in  fruit  growing,  and  the  results  of  the  irrigation  of  orchards 
on  the  Pacific  coast.  This  portion  of  the  text  will  give  an  understand- 
ing of  the  principles  which  underlie  irrigation  practice  in  California, 
so  far  as  the  preparation  of  land  and  application  of  water  are  con- 


cerned.  The  reader  is  then  prepared  to  take  up  the  study  of  the  spe- 
cial methods  and  practices  employed  in  different  parts  of  the  State. 
Those  given  are  from  the  Southern  and  Central  portions  of  California. 

The  summary  of  investigations  of  the  amount  of  water  used 
throughout  the  United  States,  which  follows,  is  intended  to  aid  the 
reader  in  reaching  a  conclusion  as  to  the  area  which  can  be  served  by 
the  water  supply  of  his  section.  The  concluding  pages  of  the  bulletin 
deal  with  some  of  the  evils  of  irrigation  and  the  methods  by  which 
they  may  be  overcome.  The  two  chief  evils — the  swamping-up  of  the 
lower  lands  of  the  irrigated  territory,  and  the  accumulation  of  alkali 
in  the  surface  soil — both  have  their  origin  in  seepage  waters.  This  is 
followed  by  the  results  of  some  of  the  alkali  and  drainage  studies  made 
in  the  State. 

As  collateral  reading  for  the  text-book,  Chapter  III,  King's  work 
on  Irrigation  and  Drainage,  published  by  Macmillan  &  Co.,  pages  131 
to  170  and  pages  269  to  289,  may'be  read  with  profit. 

IRRIGATION  INSTITUTIONS. 

Volume  1. — Text-book:  Irrigation  Institutions,  by  Mead,  published  by  Macmillan 
&  Co. 

•Volume  2. — A  Report  on  Irrigation  in  California,  published  by  the  Office  of  Ex- 
periment Stations,  United  States  Department  of  Agriculture. 

Volume  3. — Canal  and  Stream  Management. 

The  course  in  Irrigation  Institutions  is  intended  to  give  an  under- 
standing of  the  legal  antl  economic  principles  which  govern  the  man- 
agement of  streams  and  the  distribution  of  water  from  canals  in  the 
states  where  irrigation  has  assumed  large  importance.  The  text  gives 
an  outline  of  the  evolution  of  these  laws  and  customs. 

Volume  2  describes  the  conditions  prevailing  in  some  of  the  valleys 
of  California.  Volume  3  gives  some  examples  of  canal  management  in 
a  number  of  the  Rocky  Mountain  states,  and  follows  this  with  a  de- 
scription of  the  methods  for  acquiring  rights  from  streams  and  the 
division  of  water  between  those  holding  these  rights. 

For  information  concerning  Instruction  in  Irrigation  at  the  Uni- 
versity of  California,  address  B.  A.  Etcheverry,  Assistant  Professor  of 
Irrigation,  Berkeley,  California. 

For  information  concerning  reading  courses  in  Irrigation,  address 
Mr.  W.  T.  Clarke,  Department  of  University  Extension  in  Agricul- 
ture, Berkeley,  California, 


